Italy's Eni confirmed on Monday that it is in discussions with Spain's Repsol and Venezuela's state-owned oil company, PDVSA, regarding the potential and conditions for natural gas exports from Venezuela's Cardón IV project, but a final agreement has not yet been reached.
An Eni spokesperson stated in a declaration: "We confirm that discussions are ongoing between Eni, Repsol, and PDVSA concerning the potential and conditions for gas exports from the Cardón IV project. However, we will not comment on details that have not been finalized by the parties."
This statement was issued in response to prior media reports. According to those reports, Eni and Repsol had already reached an agreement with Venezuela, with plans to commence liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports from Venezuela's offshore mega-gas field by the end of 2031. The reports indicated the agreement was signed by Venezuela's interim president, and would permit the two companies to more than double production from the Perla gas field and export the gas via a floating LNG terminal.
Discovered in 2009, the Perla field is one of the largest natural gas finds in Latin America, with estimated reserves of approximately 17 trillion cubic feet. Current production from the field is about 585 million cubic feet per day, all of which supplies the Venezuelan domestic market. Under the reported agreement framework, exports could begin once domestic supply reaches 645 million cubic feet per day. The companies plan to add two new platforms by 2028, with exports starting after daily production reaches 1.2 billion cubic feet. The agreement also reportedly extends the field's operating lease from 2036 to 2051.
The reported agreement also allegedly includes guarantees for compensating Eni and Repsol for billions of dollars worth of gas extracted for Venezuela over many years but for which they were not paid. Eni's 2025 financial report shows its nominal receivable from PDVSA is approximately $2.3 billion, with a book recoverable value of around $1 billion.
Global LNG supply has been disrupted by approximately 20% due to the war involving Iran, while the current U.S. administration is easing sanctions on Venezuela to allow companies to rebuild its energy infrastructure. Against this backdrop, the two European energy companies have persisted with this 20-year-old project through years of political turmoil, and securing export permission is considered a significant victory.
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